Trash bag supporting device

ABSTRACT

A device for holding open the mouth of a drawstring trash bag is disclosed. The device rests on top of the partially closed mouth of the trash bag and is secured in place by the bag&#39;s drawstrings. Ideally, the bag will be hanging to create the necessary tension in the drawstrings to keep the device in place. The device comprises a rigid plate with a hole, and notches for receiving the drawstrings. The hole is sized to receive disposable beverage cans or other similar waste. A portion of the upper surface of the plate may be dedicated to the display of promotional indicia. A holder for hanging the trash bag by its drawstrings is also disclosed. The holder may be mounted to the rear bumper of an automobile or other similar location.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to the field of waste disposal, and moreparticularly to a device that can be used to hold open the mouth of adrawstring trash bag to receive waste in situations where the trash bagis used without a trash can.

2. Background & Description of the Related Art

When people engage in outdoor recreational activities away from theirhome, they frequently do not have access to a trashcan or other wastereceptacle when needing to dispose of waste. To address this problem,people commonly use drawstring trash bags for waste disposal during suchactivities. One benefit of using a drawstring trash bag is that, whenthe bag is not in use, the mouth may be easily closed by cinching thedrawstrings. This allows the bag and its contents to be easilytransported to a permanent waste receptacle without fear of trashspilling out of the bag. Another benefit is that the bag may be hung byits drawstrings in a visible and easily accessible location, whilekeeping it elevated and away from obstacles on the ground.

It can be difficult, however, to use a drawstring trash bag in themanner described above because the mouth of the bag tends to close whenthe bag is hanging. The weight of the bag and its contents often has atendency to cinch the drawstrings thus causing the mouth of the bag toclose when the bag is hanging by its drawstrings.

What is needed is a device that will allow the bag to hang by itsdrawstrings in a convenient location and at the same time keep the mouthof the bag open so that the bag is always ready to receive waste. Otherdevices have attempted to do this by creating a rigid support rim aroundthe perimeter of the mouth of the trash bag. None, however, have been ascompact, portable, and easy to use as the current invention.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention comprises a flat, rigid plate with a trashreceiving hole or opening extending therethrough. The rigid plate can beplaced on top of a drawstring trash bag to keep the mouth of the bagopen an amount sufficient to accept small waste such as disposablebeverage cans and bottles which first pass through the hole in theplate. The rigid plate rests on top of the mouth of the bag and is heldin place by the trash bag drawstrings. The plate has a plurality ofreceivers formed in and extending inward from a periphery of the rigidplate for receiving the drawstrings. A hook or holder from which the bagcan hang from its drawstrings may also be used in combination with therigid plate.

The weight of the hanging bag and its contents creates a downward forceon the drawstrings. This downward force tends to move the drawstringscloser together and creates a cinching motion which closes the mouth ofthe trash bag. The motion of the drawstrings coming together as thetrash bag mouth closes creates a force that is applied to the plate bythe drawstrings within the receivers, thus keeping the plate frommoving. Abutment of the drawstrings against the plate, within thereceivers, prevents the drawstrings from cinching the opening or mouthof the bag smaller than the trash receiving opening or hole through theplate thereby keeping the mouth of the bag open an amount sufficient toallow waste dropped through the opening in the plate to pass through themouth of the bag.

The plate also provides a nominal amount of weight to the bag thusallowing it to hang vertically and minimizing horizontal movement of thebag that may be caused by wind or drafts. The flat upper surface of theplate may be used for the printing of logos or other promotional indiciathereon. This feature allows businesses, sports teams, or other suchentities to advertise in a place that is regularly seen by individualsusing the trash bag opening plate.

The holder for hanging the trash bag may be temporarily mounted to therear bumper of an automobile, the sidewall of a pick-up truck or anothersimilar mounting surface that is likely to be present at outdooractivities away from the home.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the preferred embodiment of theinvention comprising a rigid plate installed on a drawstring trash bagfor the primary purpose of keeping the bag open to accept waste incombination with a hook for supporting the trash bag from thedrawstrings.

FIG. 2 is a top view of the rigid plate from FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged and fragmentary cross-sectional view of the rigidplate and trash bag taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of a second embodiment of the rigid plate.

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of a third embodiment of the rigid plate.

FIG. 6 is a top plan view of a fourth embodiment of the rigid plate.

FIG. 7 is a top plan view of a fifth embodiment of the rigid plate.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

As required, detail embodiments of the present invention are disclosedherein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodimentsare merely exemplary of the invention, which may be embodied in variousforms. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosedherein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis forthe claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in theart to variously employ the present invention in virtually anyappropriately detailed structure. The term “rectangular” as used in thispatent is meant to include both square and non-square rectangularshapes.

Referring to the drawings in more detail, the reference numeral 1 refersto a trash bag opening device 1 for keeping a drawstring trash bag 2sufficiently open to allow trash, such as a disposable metal beveragecan 3, to be deposited into the bag 2 when the bag is hanging by adrawstring 4. The bag 2 may be suspended from a hook 8 with thedrawstring 4 supported by the hook 8. The hook 8 is sized and adapted tobe mounted on the rear bumper of an automobile or on the side wall of apick-up truck.

A drawstring trash bag 2 of the type with which the rigid plate 1 may beused is shown in FIGS. 1 and 3. The trash bag 2 is formed from a thinplastic sheet or film with an upper portion of the plastic sheetmaterial forming the bag 2 rolled over on itself to form a sleeve 11surrounding a mouth 12 of the bag 2 around an upper edge 13 of the bag2. The draw string 4 is positioned within the sleeve 11. In a typicaldraw string trash bag 2 the drawstring 4 extends around the entire mouth12 within the sleeve 11. The drawstring 4 is generally continuous, butmay be formed from two elongated plastic strands welded together attheir ends and to the material forming the bag 2 and sleeve 11 at welds16 formed along the outer edges of the bag 2. Welds 16 act as anchorpoints between the body of the trash bag and the drawstring 4.

Outlet openings or exit openings 17 are formed in the sleeve 11 to allowportions of the draw string 4 to be withdrawn therethrough. In a typicaldraw string trash bag 2, there are two such outlet openings 17, eachlocated midway between both anchor points or welds 16 securing thedrawstring 4 to the bag 2 along the edges. Portions or strands 21 and 22of the drawstring 4 are pulled out of the sleeve 11 through thedrawstring outlet openings 17 and pulled upward relative to the rest ofthe bag 2. Drawing the strands 21 and 22 while holding the bag downmanually or through the weight of trash in the bag 2 draws the mouth 12of trash bag 2 inward, decreasing its size until the bag is sufficientlyclosed. When the strands 21 and 22 of the drawstring 4 are drawn fromthe bag 2, two segments or legs 21 a and 21 b and 22 a and 22 b aregenerally formed along each strand 21 and 22 respectively.

Referring back to FIGS. 1-3 a preferred embodiment of the trash bagopening device 1 and is shown installed on a drawstring trash bag 2 inFIGS. 1 and 3. The device 1 is formed from a square shaped rigid plateor panel 24 which rests on top of an upper edge of the sleeve 11 ormouth 12 of trash bag 2. The rigid plate 24 may be formed of anysuitable material, including a rigid plastic, resin impregnatedfiberglass, metal or composite material and includes opposed planarsurfaces 26 and 27 and a peripheral edge 29. The rigid plate 24 in theembodiment shown in FIG. 2 is generally square in shape with a width andheight of approximately five to seven inches.

A trash receiving hole 31 extends through the center of the rigid plate24 between the opposed planar surfaces 26 and 27 to allow trash to passtherethrough and into the bag 2 as described in more detail hereafter.Hole 31 is sized to accept trash at least as wide as a conventionaltwelve ounce disposable aluminum beverage, such as can 3, or adisposable water bottle, or sports drink bottle or the like. Such a can3 is approximately two and one half inches in diameter. The hole 31,which may be round, preferably has a diameter or width of betweenapproximately two and three quarter inches to four inches so that a can3 may be dropped axially through the hole 31. It is foreseen that hole31 may be larger or smaller depending on the type of trash beingdisposed. For example, the hole 31 may be sized larger to allow bottlesfor sports drinks to pass therethrough and which tend to have a largerdiameter. It is also foreseen that hole 31 may be shaped in a variety ofgeometries, however circular and square will likely perform best.

Four draw string receivers 34 are formed in the rigid plate 2. Thereceivers 34 in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1-3 are formed as slots 38extending inward into the plate 2 from its peripheral edge 29 nearcorners thereof. Each of the slots 38 includes a relatively narrowchannel 44 and a rounded inner end 46. A first pair of the slots 38 aand 38 b are formed in spaced relation in one side of the rigid plate 24and a second pair of the slots 38 c and 38 d are formed in spacedrelation in a second, opposite side of the rigid plate 24. Channels 44of slots 38 a and 38 b curve toward each other from the peripheral edge29 of the plate 24 toward the inner ends 46 of the slots 38 a and 38 b.Similarly, channels 44 of slots 38 c and 38 d curve toward each otherfrom the peripheral edge 29 of the plate 24 toward the inner ends 46 ofthe slots 38 c and 38 d. The slots 38 a-d are approximately one halfinch to one inch long and the channels are approximately a sixteenth ofan inch wide with the rounded inner ends 46 approximately a quarter inchin diameter.

The rigid plate 24 is secured in place on top of the trash bag 2 byinserting the segments 21 a, 21 b, 22 a and 22 b of drawstring 2 inslots 38 a-d. With the drawstring strands 21 and 22 supported on thehook 8, the weight of trash in the bag 2, pulls the drawstring segments21 a-b and 22 a-b inward under tension, exerting pressure inward againstthe rigid plate 24 within the slots 38 a-d. The tension on the strandsegments 21 a-b and 22 a-b produces both normal and tangential forcesexerted by the segments 21 a-b and 22 a-b on the respective drawstringreceivers 34 securing the rigid plate 24 in place. All of the edges ofthe plate that may come into contact with the drawstring 2 arepreferably beveled or rounded to deduce damage to the drawstring 2.

Rigid plate 24 prevents the mouth 12 of trash bag 2 from fully closing.Because the drawstring receiving slots 38 a-d forming receivers 34 arespaced outward from the trash receiving hole 31, the drawstringreceivers 34 maintain a minimum distance between the drawstring segments21 a-b and 22 a-b received therein sufficient to keep the mouth 12 openwider than the trash receiving hole 31.

As noted previously, the trash bag 2 can hang by drawstrings 4 fromtrash bag hook 8. Trash bag hook 8 includes a downwardly opening, hookedmounting end 51 sized to mount on or over a sidewall of a truck or abumper. Trash bag hook 8 further includes an upwardly opening, hookedsupport end 52 sized to receive and support said drawstring strands 21and 22 therein. Drawstring strands 21 and 22 may be placed in theinverted hooked support end such that the trash bag 2 hangs therebelowfrom the drawstring strands 21 and 22.

As discussed previously, it is foreseen that trash receiving hole 31through plate 24 may be of varying geometries and sizes. It is alsoforeseen that the periphery of plate 24 may be of varying geometries andsizes. FIGS. 4 through 7 are illustrative of some of the contemplatedvariations of the trash bag opening device 1 showing varying geometries.

FIG. 4 shows an alternative embodiment of a rigid plate 61 forming thetrash bag opening device 1. Rigid plate 61 is generally formed as asquare plate, but instead of forming the drawstring receivers as slots,in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the receivers are formed as cut-outsor notches 63 a-d formed in each corner of the plate 61. The drawstringsegments 21 a-b and 22 a-b are then received in notches 63 a-drespectively generally supported against an inner corner 65 of eachnotch 63 a-d. The same forces caused by tension in the drawstringsegments 21 a-b and 22 a-b that are present in the first disclosedembodiment are also present in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3. Theseforces are exerted on the notch corners 65 thus keeping the rigid plate61 in place. It is also noted that rigid plate 61 includes a trashreceiving hole 67 extending through the plate 61 that is square. Thewidth and height of the square are preferably sized to be at leastslightly larger than the diameter of a conventional twelve ouncebeverage can or a disposable water bottle or sports drink bottle.

FIG. 5 shows a rigid plate 71 forming the trash bag opening device 1that is similar in construction to rigid plate 24 shown in FIG. 2 exceptthat rigid plate 71 is of circular in shape instead of square. As shownin FIG. 5, indicia 75 such as text or trademarks including team names,product names and logos may be printed on either or both of the opposedplanar surfaces 26 and 27 of the plate 71 generally in the area betweenthe trash receiving opening extending therethrough and the outerperiphery of the plate 71.

FIG. 6 shows a rigid plate 81 forming the trash bag opening device 1that is similar in construction to the rigid plate 71 shown in FIG. 5except that the trash receiving hole 83 of rigid plate 81 is squareinstead of round.

FIG. 7 shows a rigid plate 91 forming the trash bag opening device 1that similar in construction to the rigid plate 61 shown in FIG. 4except that rigid plate 91 is circular in shape instead of square andthe trash receiving hole 93 is of round instead of square.

It is to be understood that while certain forms of the present inventionhave been illustrated and described herein, it is not to be limited tothe specific forms or arrangement of the parts described and shown.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desiredto be secured by Letters Patent is as follows:
 1. A device for holding amouth of a drawstring trash bag in an open position to allow trash to bedropped into the drawstring trash bag, the drawstring trash bag having adrawstring positioned within a sleeve extending around the mouth of thedrawstring trash bag with portions of said drawstring withdrawablethrough at least two outlets from said sleeve; said device comprising: arigid panel sized to be positioned over the mouth of the drawstringtrash bag and between segments of the drawstring withdrawn from saidoutlets in said sleeve; said rigid panel having a trash receiving holeextending therethrough sized wide enough to allow at least aconventionally sized twelve ounce can to pass axially therethrough; saidrigid panel having at least four receivers formed therein and extendinginward from an outer periphery thereof, each said receiver sized andshaped to receive a segment of the drawstring withdrawn from saidoutlets in the sleeve of the drawstring trash bag, said receivers spacedoutward from said trash receiving hole such that when the segments ofthe drawstring are positioned within said receivers with said rigidplate positioned in closely spaced relation above the mouth of thedrawstring trash bag, the mouth is held open an amount sufficient toallow trash passing through the trash receiving hole in said rigid plateto pass through the mouth of the drawstring trash bag.
 2. The device asin claim 1, wherein said receivers are slots.
 3. The device as in claim1 wherein said receivers comprise two pairs of slots, each pair of slotsextending inward from a peripheral edge of said rigid panel on oppositesides of said rigid panel.
 4. The device as in claim 1 wherein saidreceivers comprise two pairs of slots, each slot extending inward from aperipheral edge of said rigid panel and each slot in each pair of slotscurving toward the other slot in said pair of slots.
 5. The device ofclaim 1, wherein said receivers are notches.
 6. The device of claim 1,wherein the outer periphery of said panel is circular.
 7. The device ofclaim 1, wherein the outer periphery of said panel is square.
 8. Thedevice of claim 1, wherein said trash receiving hole is circular.
 9. Thedevice of claim 1, wherein said trash receiving hole is square.
 10. Thedevice of claim 1, further comprising a holder for supporting thedrawstring trash bag, said holder comprising: an inverted U-shapedbracket for mounting over the top of a supporting surface, a hook shapedarm attached to and extending away from said inverted U-shaped bracketwhere said arm is sized to receive drawstrings from a trash bag andsupport the trash bag in a hanging position.
 11. The device as in claim1 having promotional indicia printed on a planar surface of said rigidpanel.
 12. The device as in claim 1 in combination with the drawstringtrash bag.
 13. A device for holding a mouth of a drawstring trash bag inan open position to allow trash to be dropped into the drawstring trashbag, the drawstring trash bag having a drawstring positioned within asleeve extending around the mouth of the drawstring trash bag withportions of said drawstring withdrawable through at least two outletsfrom said sleeve; said device comprising: a rigid panel sized to bepositioned over the mouth of the drawstring trash bag and betweensegments of the drawstring withdrawn from said outlets in said sleeve;said rigid panel having a trash receiving hole extending therethroughsized wide enough to allow at least a conventionally sized individualbeverage container to pass axially therethrough; said rigid panel havingtwo pairs of slots formed therein and extending inward from an outerperiphery of said rigid panel with each slot in each pair of slotscurving toward the other slot in said pair of slots, each said slotsized to receive a segment of the drawstring withdrawn from said outletsin the sleeve of the drawstring trash bag, said slots spaced outwardfrom said trash receiving hole such that when the segments of thedrawstring are positioned within said receivers with said rigid platepositioned in closely spaced relation above the mouth of the drawstringtrash bag, the mouth is held open an amount sufficient to allow trashpassing through the trash receiving hole in said rigid plate to passthrough the mouth of the drawstring trash bag; said device furthercomprising a holder for supporting the drawstring trash bag comprisingan inverted U-shaped bracket for mounting over the top of a supportingsurface and a hook shaped arm attached to and extending away from saidinverted U-shaped bracket, said arm is sized to receive said drawstringsfrom said trash bag and support said trash bag in a hanging position.14. The device of claim 13, wherein the outer periphery of said panel iscircular.
 15. The device of claim 13, wherein the outer periphery ofsaid panel is square.
 16. The device of claim 13, wherein said trashreceiving hole is circular.
 17. The device of claim 13, wherein saidtrash receiving hole is square.
 18. The device as in claim 13 havingpromotional indicia printed on a planar surface of said rigid panel.